Full Notification

Two stolen car chases in one week leads to 4 arrests.

South Brunswick Police have charged 5 juveniles in connection to two stolen cars in the Township over the past week. The two incidents took place on Monday and Saturday. In the Monday incident, three juveniles from Somerset County were in a stolen vehicle at a Route 27 gas station at 5:30PM. The attendant at the Exxon Gas Station, 3520 Route 27 reported that the suspects had filled the vehicle with gas and fled without paying. The attendant reported the gold colored Toyota Camry fled on New Road towards Route 1.

Minutes later Sergeant Michael Kuchma located the Toyota Camry on New Road and ran the license plate prior to attempting to stop it. The vehicle was listed as stolen out of Franklin Township on October 31, 2017. Officers then attempted to stop the vehicle, but the driver failed to stop and increased speed as he headed onto Major Road, then Route 1 north. The driver made a series of turns on Executive Drive, Cornwall Road, and Northumberland Way in an attempt to lose officers. The driver came back onto Route 1 north and deliberately sideswiped a patrol car. The stolen vehicle headed another half mile on Route 1 and turned into the Royal Oaks Apartment complex. The suspects abandoned the stolen vehicle on Timberline Court after striking a parked vehicle. Four juveniles exited the stolen car and fled on foot. Investigators later learned that the juveniles ran through woods and used an Uber to pick them up about a half mile away. Officers determined that one of the juvenile suspects had linked their cell phone to the in-car Bluetooth which displayed the juveniles name on the dashboard. A backpack was also located inside of the vehicle which contained a High School hall pass with one of the juveniles name on it. All the suspects were identified and charged in the 48 hours after they abandoned the stolen vehicle. All were charged with eluding an officer, receiving stolen property, and theft. All juveniles were released pending their first court appearance.

The second incident took place on Saturday at 10:25pm when Officer James Kraivec observed a 2015 Toyota Corolla on Route 1 by Henderson Road that was listed as stolen in the NCIC database. Officer Kraivec followed the vehicle which had been reported stolen out of Hazlet northbound on Route 1 until additional patrol units arrived. Officer Kraivec activatited his lights and siren and the vehicle pulled over as it pulled off Route 1 onto Jersey Avenue. After a few seconds the stolen car accelerated away from the stop and fled on Jersey Avenue. Officer Kraivec did not pursue as the vehicle fled at over 75mph. Approximately 5 minutes later New Brunswick Police reported the stolen vehicle had crashed on Jersey Avenue near Route 27. New Brunswick Police had detained one of the juveniles who had fled from the vehicle. The juvenile from Ocean County was charged with joyriding. The investigation remains active for the other three suspects.

Chief Raymond Hayducka credited all the officers involved with making the arrests without any injury to civilians, officers, or the public. “In these two cases juveniles with little concern for public safety drove stolen cars throughout the Township. They committed crimes and attempted to elude officers. The coordination and skill the officers displayed with capturing the suspects without injury or harm is a testament to their training and excellent police work.”

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